The Three Professors
by Priya Ashok
Summary: ONE SHOT. The Professors Flitwick and Sprout try and find out what the fall out between McGonagall, Snape and Dumbledore had been, and how and why had they patched up now. Please read and review. Thank you. :)
The wonderful world of Harry Potter belongs to JKR.

Back Story – this small one shot is based on my other fic Harry Potter and the Trip to the Past. 19 years after the war, Harry is transported 25 years into the past arriving as a 11 year old, merging with himself. Armed with his fore knowledge (canon) he defeats Voldemort in the Graveyard at the end of his fourth year. This fic happens after that. On the first day of the summer vacation. Reading the last two chapters of Harry Potter and the Trip to the Past may make this fic be understood better. Thank you for reading. Thank you kindly if you'd take time to post a review. :)

 _ **The Three Professors**_

Albus Dumbledore walked into the Great Hall of the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, a smile on his face and a spring in his step. It was the first day of the summer holidays; Voldemort had been defeated in a wonderful manner by that incredible boy Harry Potter, who had returned to the past on account of falling on a small but potent time turner. He had been an Auror, a Head Auror in the last timeline and Dumbledore could only admire him for the way he had disposed of Voldemort using his previous knowledge. He had done it very secretly too, no one except Severus had known about Harry's trip 25 years to the Past, arriving here just before start of First year. Now in the Tri - Wizard Tournament, Harry had used his knowledge and defeated Voldemort the moment Voldemort had been reborn taking Harry's blood.

Harry had also rather ruthlessly disposed of the Lestranges, Crouch Jr., Avery, Rookwood, and the Carrows and had according to Severus, _obliviated_ the rest before sending them to wait for a summons that would not come. He, Dumbledore had of course gone to Azkaban yesterday evening and had strengthened the wards against Animagus and added other protections. Now the already forbidding fortress was even more impenetrable.

His smile dimmed a little when he remembered the day's agenda. To visit those despicable Dursleys. To strike the fear of humanity and decency inside them. Though he acknowledged he may not be successful. He shook his head minutely as he reached the single table placed in the centre and sat down. How had Arabella Figg missed out on what looked to be terrible treatment inflicted on Harry by that awful family? And it looked like Harry's first time had been ominously bad. As if he had been terribly abused. Dumbledore felt very sad. Abused. What a horrible term. To think Harry had such impeccable character after what he may have gone through.

"Good morning Albus." Squeaked the small Charms wizard Flitwick. "You look dull. Alright there?" and looked at Minerva and then flicked a glance at Snape who was sitting there his face as sour as ever. Flitwick would have given his wand arm to know what had been happening the last few days.

Snape had been horribly rude towards Minerva and Albus right from the day the Tri - Wizard Tournament had ended until yesterday, but to his and the other Professors shock, Albus had shrugged it away and while Minerva looked as if she dearly wanted to strangle Snape every time she looked at him, she had not uttered a word to defend herself.

That had kept the other staff away, but he knew a word from her would make all them curse Snape for his attitude the last few days. Speculation ran high among the others and he and Pomona and Poppy had even cornered Minerva, but she had said nothing.

Today though, Flitwick observed, the body language between the two were different. His already peaked curiosity spiralled out of bounds as Minerva greeted everyone for the first time in days. "Good morning." She literally chirped as she sat down, before she looked at Snape and smiled. The whole table had stiffened in expectation of the same vitriol that Snape had been muttering the last few days. Today though, he nodded back, prompting startled sounds from around the table. He smiled a nasty smile at the gasps, which made the rest of the table shudder in a mild horror.

Flitwick had to say he was enjoying this a bit too much, but he knew that he, like the rest of the Staff would never know the reason behind Snape's behaviour the last few weeks or how or why the patch up seemed to have occurred. And the most shocking thing he knew he'd be discussing with the others would be the apparent fact that _Minerva_ had made it up to Snape, instead of what he and the others had been betting upon. That Minerva would somehow turn Snape into the slug he had been until then and _then_ punish him for his impunity towards her and Albus _and_ then finally let Snape off when it became apparent he'd die of humiliation and torture.

That was so obviously _not_ the case that it had Flitwick bouncing on his seat like he had to frantically go to the bathroom, as he agonised over what could have happened.

Snape smiled to himself as he noted the reactions of the staff towards him; when he came in, and now, when Minerva had come in. The other staff would never in their lives expect Minerva to be civil with him. But how could she be anything else. Harry had revealed what he'd done the last time around; that alone had had her thanking him until he thought he'd die of horrified embarrassment. Then, when she knew that he knew about Harry's impromptu trip to the past and he had been prepared to _and_ had helped her Lion, she had become an embarrassment, until he had had to threaten her with the Unforgivables.

And then there had been Albus Bloody Dumbledore. He growled a bit and then smirked when Pomona and Rolonda moved their chairs away just a little bit. He looked down at his fork and paused in bemusement as his thought ran away towards Lily as they did of late. He sighed as his eyes grew sad. However he looked at it, it seemed that Lily was fated to die. All because he wanted to look bloody important to himself and say, "So there James Potter. Sod off. I'm better than you." How that had failed. Merlin; his stupidity was probably only offset by James Potter's own and he sighed again. Potter's _and_ Lily's stupidity if he was to be honest with himself. He supposed being married and being infected by the disease that was James Potter had removed Lily of her smarts and her wonderful logical brain.

 _Why_ on earth, _why_ in the name of all that was good and kind, _why_ in the name of all that was _not_ James _Idiot Stupid Pureblood for Brains_ Potter (he really couldn't include Harry by simply using the Potter name now, could he) and _why_ in the name of all Merciful things in Heaven, would Lily agree to use the Idiot Dog or the Wimpy Rat as a Secret Keeper, when the only person the Dark Lord (he really needed to start thinking of _that_ idiot by his name) really feared was available and had in fact volunteered. Was it so important to show your trust in a friend when you had a bloody spy in the Order? What if even a loyal friend was under the _Imperius_ and therefore a danger?

How _could_ Lily agree? James Potter had no brains. That was a given. He was a Pureblood snot who lived and played by the stereotypes. But Lily? Well, Snape sighed again, prompting another slight movement away from him on both sides. Snape did not notice it as he continued to ruminate sourly. That act had gotten them killed. Well of course he had helped. A lot. He cringed when he remembered Albus's question.

" _Would you have cared so much Severus, if Voldemort had not targeted the Potters?"_

He knew wouldn't have cared a whit. Lily's death had done what her impassioned arguments and her stubborn stance had not. He had learned how low he had fallen when he chose the path he did. He had become what he had accused the Marauders of being all the seven years at School. A bully. They had bullied him in School; four on one. Glorious Marauder years, he sneered to himself, unconscious of the alarm of the other watching staff. And he had taken revenge in exactly the same way. Their fault was to label a whole section of people guilty and act on that guilt with a righteousness they had no business to presume. His fault was exactly the same. He labelled the rest of the world guilty and assumed a superiority he had no business to assume. He sighed again and was glad to be diverted by Albus's presence.

All the staff looked at Dumbledore as he sat down. The staff with the exception of McGonagall and Snape waited eagerly for something to happen. They were sorely let down, when Albus hummed a little tune as he gaily greeted everyone. The staff collectively sighed and realised they would never know what had happened unless one of the three gave way and put them out of their misery. Flitwick shook his head. He did not see that happening.

Neither did Pomona as her lips turned down in dismay, contemplating the terrible fact that she would probably go through her life without knowing the reason for Snape's behaviour and the justification for it, since it was now beginning to look as if Albus and Minerva were in the wrong and Snape, her mind buckled under the sheer strain of the faintest expression of the most blasphemous thought that _Snape_ could be in the _right_. Oh dear! She'd thought it. How could she? How could those two words 'Snape' and 'right' go together in the same sentence? How could Snape of all people be vindicated? That was wrong. Plain wrong. Now that terrible, terrible sentence would not go away from her mind. She was going to hell, she knew for entertaining such unholy thoughts.

She moaned a bit and then sighed and gave up the thought Ghost. She had held strong all these years, encouraging her Hufflepuffs against the evil that was the Head of Slytherin, when they came to her in tears, which was after most of Snape's classes. She had done the fine job of assuring her little plants that no, they were certainly not bananas or dunderheads. That they could stand strong, while thinking, rather uncharitably she acknowledged, that 'could the little snots stop that horrible whining and sniffling? He had only taken off ten points, ten miserable points for God's sake, not caned them. After all it was not as if it would make a difference between Hufflepuff _winning_ and _losing_ the House Cup, now would it?'

Calling them little duckies; agreeing with the said duckies that calling them dunderheads did hurt their little sensitive souls, day in and day out was tiring. The ungrateful blighters never understood that she could take only this much. And they should remember that some year or the other (by Morgana why all seven years of 'Puffs whine and cry she never knew; she was a 'Puff and she was sure she never wringed her hands in despair after Potions Class; of course _she_ never had Snape; she would have probably turned him over to the Venomous Tentacula after her first class if she had) had classes with Snape every day and it was difficult for her to maintain her composure and comfort them every day, every week, every year. Pomona crumpled into herself.

She would _never know_ what happened. Dear God. She was Doomed.

"I'm fine Filius." Dumbledore said smiling, finally answering Flitwick's question. His amusement increased and he tried hard not to laugh as he correctly assessed his staff's collective reaction to his, Minerva and Severus's attitude. He hummed a little tune as he ate, chatting happily to one and all and the as they finished breakfast, he stood up and said.

"Minerva, Severus, care to come with me to make a small house visit?"

The whole staff table shuddered as one at the sudden viciousness evident in Minerva's and Snape's face. Both Professors stood up at once.

"With pleasure Albus." Said McGonagall a most vindictive tone in her voice.

"I _would_ care to come thank you" Snape inclined his head. His voice was smooth, but the horror it invoked in the other staff members was too funny for Dumbledore as he chortled just a little bit, but managed to turn it into a hum as Snape glared at him and Pomona looked reproachfully at his humour at their expense.

Flitwick decided he was going to try.

"Anywhere special Albus?" he asked hopefully.

"No Filius. Just somewhere outside the Castle."

What the hell did that mean? An answer without meaning anything. Dumbledore's speciality. Flitwick's expression soured, but he still persisted to the admiration of the others and the amusement of the three.

"Alright there then? Between you three I mean?" he stammered and shuddered to a hasty stop, when he encountered Snape's stare at this personal approach. Filius was indignant. Snape and Minerva were literally glaring at him at his daring. Good Goblin's Great Gobble! He'd only asked him what they would have if he'd been in their position. Flitwick revelled in that thought for a moment. How he'd crowed that he knew something these two didn't. Then the bubble burst.

He would _never know_ what happened. He'd have to live with _that_ knowledge. _He._ _Did. Not. Know_. He crumpled into himself. For a Ravenclaw that was the height of cruelty.

"Everything's fine Flitwick. It couldn't be better really." Minerva had the nerve to look puzzled, as her eyes danced in amusement. "Why? What did you think was wrong?"

The whole staff table collectively gasped at this shameless lie. Flitwick felt vindicated. How could Minerva stand there and talk like that? Did she not know that even Hagrid, bless that ignorant man, could sniff out this blatant untruth? Was she saying that Snape's behaviour was fine and couldn't be better? Were they to expect Snape to relapse into such acts now and then from then on? He whimpered and by the sounds around the table, it looked as if he was not the only one who had come to similar understanding, if Pomona's moan, Vector's gasps and Babbling's heaving breaths and Sinistra's rapid muttering … Of the constellation names?! … Was any indication.

Snape smirked and sneered at the table and watched as the whole table tried to lean away from him, which by the position of Snape, the table and the other staff seated around it was nothing short of acrobatic, inventive and astounding.

Then, Dumbledore mercifully came to the staff's rescue, just when the others were bracing for a relapse right then, into the Snape Act of the Two Weeks, as those mysterious days would come to be named.

"Well, we're off." He said and the staff heaved a sigh of relief and looked just a little bit eager for them to be gone. Then they'd discuss this terrible morning.

But then Dumbledore being Dumbledore continued to talk and showed his evil, vindictive nature as he dropped his bombshell on them.

"We'll be back soon. Then perhaps, we could have a Quidditch Match. Filius, you and Pomona can be opposite Team Captains. You can discuss your sides by the time we return. I'll be playing, so choose me please." He turned to Minerva and Snape. The whole staff Table recoiled in horror of what was going to happen. Before any of them could gather their wits and refuse, Dumbledore the hated, hated man, breezed on.

"Severus and Minerva, you two want to play?"

Minerva nodded and smiled, while Severus drawled. "I would not miss it for anything Albus." And both Flitwick and Pomona knew they would be duelling to the death to take Snape into their team, so that the other team would bear the brunt of … Snape.

Dumbledore smiled that knowing smile that made Flitwick and Pomona want to murder him, and then they were off, leaving a devastated staff table, already fighting over Snape and wanting to be in the same team Snape was in.

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"Well that was fun." Said Dumbledore as they walked to the main gates.

"They are really too nosy." Minerva sniffed in annoyance.

"Don't be daft Minerva. Of course they are nosy. Tell me honestly wouldn't you be? Believe me I would have tried everything except _Imperius_ to know something this big. Perhaps even that." Snape said.

McGonagall looked offended for a second, before she laughed. "Merlin! How curious they are. And in how many ways it's going to kill them?" she cackled madly as the other two sniggered like small children. They chatted and laughed with carefree abandon as they walked. By common consent they did not speak about what they learnt from Harry, since they were in a public place, unguarded from prying ears.

"Pomona and Filius are probably going to duel for you Severus." Dumbledore laughed. "You have put the fear of God into them."

Snape and Minerva snorted as one before exploding into loud laughter.

Crossing the main gates, the trio turned on the spot and silently disapparated to No. 4 Privet Drive.

 _ **End**_


End file.
